Storms, snow and heatwaves – 2020 had plenty of wild weather. So what’s in store for 2021?
MORE extreme weather conditions have been linked with climate change by many scientists – and 2020 certainly seemed to bring plenty.
Leicestershire endured – or enjoyed – storms and heatwaves, floods and droughts.
Here we take a look back at some of what nature had to throw at us.
AFTER a snow-less December and January, plenty of the white stuff arrived in February, as well as every other kind of disruption.
It was a particularly bad month for storms and they always seemed to come at the weekend.
For three weekends out of February, yellow weather warnings were issued by the Met Office.
Storm Ciara was the first named storm to hit, followed by Storm Dennis, making the floods worse as neighbourhoods had not had time to recover.
The floods affected several roads, prompting Matt Cane of Leicestershire Fire and Rescue Service to complain of “a new level of stupidity” among drivers who tried to go through them.
He said: “I could see drivers stopping, getting out and moving signs and cones and driving towards the flooded part of the road.
“I can scarcely believe it. We keep asking drivers not to drive into flood water but some just ignore our appeals.”
Later in the month there was rain, sleet and snow that led to disruption and a big jam on the M1 at the end of the month.
MAY started with showers but saw plenty of good weather, with temperatures jumping well beyond 20C on many occasions, with people living in lockdown making the most of it.
The month ended with things so serious that Severn Trent Water had to ask people not to fill their paddling pools.
A company spokesman said: “Demand for treated water has increased by about 20 per cent since the hot weather started, which is far more than the increase we saw due to hand washing when the coronavirus restrictions started.
“We’re pretty sure it’s because of people using things like sprinklers and pressure washers, especially in the early evening.
“That means we’re almost at record demand and we’re seeing customers across the Midlands experiencing low pressure as, despite our treatment works running flat out, water is being used pretty much as quickly as we can make it.”
There was also a dust devil spotted in the county in May. Steffan Read filmed the mini tornado at Lubenham.
IN June, when Leicester found itself finally released from lockdown – although only for two weeks as it turned out – there was plenty of sunny weather around to enjoy.
The heat also brought some
summer storms featuring impressive lightning displays, and people in Barlestone, near Hinckley, ended up having to use sandbags to protect their properties as water levels rose.
Later in the month, the ongoing heat led to young people being urged to stop jumping into the Ashby Canal.
LEICESTERSHIRE enjoyed a heatwave in late July and early August, with animals at Twycross Zoo being handed lollipops made with their favourite ingredients to keep them cool.
However, in the middle of all the heat, there were some storms, including one that blew down two ancient trees in Hinckley.
A chimney was struck by lightning the same night.
There were a couple of big storms
later in August, starting with Storm Ellen which came at the end of several days with weather warnings in place.
Then Storm Francis arrived at the end of the month, resulting in an amber alert being issued by the Met Office.
There were fallen trees causing damage and traffic delays, while a few low-lying roads such as Slash Lane, near Sileby, flooded.
Another warning was issued a couple of days later when thunderstorms brought further rain.
There was so much rain dumped on the county in early October that the Met Office issued a yellow weather warning.
It covered pretty much the whole of England and Wales, as well as parts of Scotland.
As Storm Aiden swept across the
UK, there were also flood alerts in place along the River Soar between Leicester and Loughborough. The flooding turned low-lying roads such as Watery Gate Lane in Thurlaston and Merrylees Road in Bagworth into rivers. Slash Lane, near Sileby, flooded too, as usual.
WIND and rain were back with a vengeance in November, with a risk of flooding in some areas and also a risk of flying marquees in the Loughborough area.
The Mercury reported that the fire service had to be called after two large marquees at a school in Leicester Road in the town had come loose.
They managed to stop it from blowing into the road.
A fire service spokesman said: “We received a call at 9.16pm advising that a large marquee close to the A6 Leicester Road, in Loughborough, was blowing loose in high winds and was in danger of blowing onto the carriageway.
“On arrival, crews found two large, steel-framed structures of the type you’d see at a wedding or other large outside event were unsafe.
“Both structures were safely brought to ground and packed away.”
The early days of November saw temperatures suddenly plummet. Whereas the overnight minimums had been at 17C at the start of the month, they dropped to freezing just a few days later.
The cold did not last too long and was replaced by more drizzle, which led to some flood alerts around the county.
DECEMBER brought some early snow, which caused long traffic queues around the north east of the county as vehicles got stuck.
And although we did not get a white Christmas, parts of the county were given a good dusting of the white stuff a few days later on December 29.
FOR 2021, the Met Office is predicting another year among the hottest on record.
Graham Madge, from the national weather service, said the average global temperature for 2021 is forecast to be between 0.91 C and 1.15C above the average for the pre-industrial period (1850-1900): the seventh year in succession when temperatures have exceeded or been close to 1C above pre-industrial levels.
The Met Office global temperature forecast for 2021 is slightly lower than some previous years since 2015, largely because of the influence of La Niña in the tropical Pacific, where sea surface temperatures are 1-2C below average.
La Niña is the opposing side of El Niño and has a temporary cooling effect on global average temperature.
Met Office scientist Dr Nick Dunstone said: “The variability of the La Niña/El Niño cycle is the second most important factor in determining the Earth’s temperature but it is simply dwarfed by the forcing effect of increasing greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.”
The series of warmest years began in 2015 – the first year when global temperatures exceeded 1C above the pre-industrial period.
The forecast is based on the key drivers of the global climate, but it does not include unpredictable events such as large volcanic eruptions, which would cause a temporary cooling.
Dr Doug Smith, from the Met Office, said: “The global temperature forecast for 2021 is an average across the planet.
“Some locations are warming more rapidly than others. For example, temperatures in the Arctic are warming at twice the rate of other regions.”
Professor Adam Scaife, head of long range prediction at the Met Office, said: “The global temperature for 2021 is unlikely to be a record year due to the influence of the current La Niña, but it will be far warmer than other past La Niña years such as 2011 and 2000 due to global warming.”